What college did you go to, and why did you choose it?

I went to Louisiana Tech in Ruston, Louisiana.  It's a public university in the northern part of the state.  Maybe 30 minutes south of the Arkansas border.  It's between Shreveport and Monroe along I-20.  The town only takes up 3 or 4 exits from the interstate so it really isn't that big of a town and certainly isn't a big school.

The summer between my junior and senior year of high school, an older friend who was dating a classmate of mine convinced me to go with them to summer school.  I was able to take college courses and live in the dorms.  I don't know if Matthew or Kylene ever realized how much their influence made my life better but this is one of the pivot points that they guided me on.  Matthew was a year older than me and I kept trying to one-up his accomplishments every year after him.  Quiz Bowl, ACT scores, etc, etc...  Kylene was one of the in crowd girls in my grade.  Beautiful as all get out and just a kind/caring person.  I'm pretty sure she's why I was pulled into the group of us that went to Panama City Beach for a senior class trip.  While they dated it seemed like it was a lifelong match.  They didn't go the distance and I might be remembering things through rose-tinted glasses.  But their impact on high school me is something I can say without reservation was positive and I'm forever thankful for it. 

The courses I took were basic ones.  I think it was something like English 101 and Astronomy 101.  English 101 was something I would've been able to skip due to my ACT scores and Astronomy ended up not counting as a science credit for my degree.  Viewed from that perspective it was an expensive and nerdy summer camp.  

But the experience of that summer.  Driving from the bottom of Louisiana to the top with no parents along with me.  Attending college classes with other college bound students.  Living in the dorms on my own.  Exploring the area with no one to tell me what to do other than my own inner monologue of making sure I took care of my obligations.  It re-affirmed my belief that college is where I wanted to be after high school.  I knew I was going to go to college but this changed it into a concrete fact instead of a suspicion.

Colin/Margo.  I don't know what your path will be after high school.  I have my hunches and I'm likely going to be right on them since I have a pretty strong hand in shaping you two.  Ya'll will be free to make your own decisions when your time comes to that point so I won't burden you hearing my expectations yet again.  If nothing else maybe use your free will and good judgement.  But I'm pretty sure that'll lead you in a direction that involves higher education.  ;-)  I want you two to go many hours away from here after you graduate from high school.  Not because this is a bad place.  It isn't.  Northwest Arkansas is an amazing place.  I want ya'll to go far away so you can see that the world is full of other places.  Some of them amazing, some of them shitholes.  Getting exposed to other places, people, ideas, and experiences is what I want to have happen for ya'll.  Come back and visit for sure.  Maybe even come back and live here after seeing the world.  But go out and see the damn world first.